Maria needs $2.45 to buy a magazine. The only money she has is a jar of nickels and dimes. Write an equation in standard form for the different amounts of nickels x and dimes y she could use. I tried .05x +.2y+2.35 but could not figure it out

Equation: 5x + 10y = 245 Cents.

Note: They only asked for an Equation.
We don't have enough information to
solve the problem.

To write the equation in standard form, we need to eliminate the decimals and make sure the equation follows the pattern "Ax + By = C".

Let's convert your equation to standard form step by step:

0.05x + 0.2y + 2.35 = 2.45

First, let's eliminate the decimals by multiplying the entire equation by 100:

100 * (0.05x + 0.2y + 2.35) = 100 * 2.45
5x + 20y + 235 = 245

Now, let's rearrange the equation to get the terms in the right order:

5x + 20y = 245 - 235
5x + 20y = 10

Finally, divide the entire equation by the greatest common divisor (GCD) of the coefficients to make sure the coefficients are relatively prime (no common factors):

GCD(5, 20) = 5

Divide each term by 5:

(5x + 20y) / 5 = 10 / 5

Simplify:

x + 4y = 2

Therefore, the equation in standard form for the different amounts of nickels (x) and dimes (y) Maria could use to buy the magazine is:

x + 4y = 2.